Before Dieting...

Bronwyn Fletcher
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Before Dieting… | Uncovering Eating Patterns and Weight Cycles - is the podcast that explores the eight types of eating and the hidden food stories behind persistent weight cycles and diet frustration. Hosted by Bronwyn Fletcher, a systems thinker, this show reveals the eating patterns that keep you stuck and uncovers the real causes behind your weight struggles. If you’re tired of dieting without success, discover a new perspective that goes beyond calories and willpower to help you break free from the endless cycle of weight loss and regain.

  1. 1d ago

    The Four Layers Behind Weight Regain

    Diets tell you what to eat. Understanding the Four Layers Behind Eating explains why. 🔦 Download your free comprehensive Infographic, "The 4 Layers of Weight Regain" here https://www.weightingforhappiness.com.au/4-layers-of-eating 🔦You can read my Blog for this Podcast here https://www.weightingforhappiness.com.au/post/the-four-layers-of-eating-why-weight-regain-isn’t-about-willpower And please leave a review of this Podcast so other women can find this information. Show Notes In this episode of Before Dieting, Bronwyn introduces the Four Layers Behind Eating Behaviour; a way of understanding why some eating seems easy to change while others feel out of our control. Drawing on conversations with more than a thousand women who have experienced weight regain, Bronwyn explores four distinct layers that sit beneath eating behaviour: Food RulesFood StoriesEating BlueprintsEating Systems Using practical examples, this episode introduces a new way of seeing eating behaviour. One that moves beyond calories, discipline and self-control to uncover the deeper structures shaping your everyday eating. In this episode ✔️ Why new concepts and language are essential when solving complex problems ✔️ The difference between Food Rules and Food Stories ✔️How Eating Blueprints set the pattern for all eating ✔️ Why some eating behaviours feel flexible while others seem impossible to change ✔️ Why restriction is often one of the strongest triggers for relief eating Three Key Takeaways 🖌️ Not all eating operates on the same layer. Different eating behaviours have different drivers. Understanding the layer you're looking at changes the explanation and the solution. 🖌️Rules describe behaviour. Stories explain behaviour. Food Rules tell us what someone does. Food Stories help explain why those behaviours became important in the first place. 🖌️Relief eating is not a willpower problem. Relief eating is the behavioural expression of an Eating System attempting to reduce emotional pressure and restore equilibrium.

    12 min

  2. Jun 2

    Definitions and Boundaries to solve recurring weight gain

    The weight regain boundary problem The Weight Ecosystem link I reference in the episode that can start your weight regain solution. Today we look at: Why do weight regain explanations begin and end with calories? In this episode Bronwyn introduces one of the foundational ideas behind the Weighting for Happiness Project: boundaries. In systems thinking, a boundary determines what gets included when you're trying to understand a problem. And what sits inside that boundary strongly influences the explanation you end up with. Most weight-loss approaches draw a very narrow boundary around food and calorie intake. But what happens when the boundary expands? What happens when weight history, family food culture and long-standing eating patterns are included in the investigation? Bronwyn explores why expanding the boundary changed the way she understood weight regain and why we need to broaden our investigation more than calories. Key Takeaways Boundaries determine solutions.Calories aren’t the entire problem.Weight regain occurs within a larger life context.Expanding the boundary changes what becomes visible. If you want to read my Blog that accompanies this episode, you can do so here. Also, you can contact me or connect with me by: hello@weightingforhappiness.com.au LinkedIn Instagram Facebook #weightregain, #emotioneating, #foodrules, #eatingsystem, #womenshealth, #midlifewomen #midlifewomen, #dieting, #weightlossafter40, #dietcycle, #menopauseweightgain #psychologyofeating, #beforedieting, #reliefeating, #comforteating, #emotionaleating, #8eatingtypes

    9 min

  3. May 26

    The Hidden Logic of Relief Eating

    Why does relief eating feel so overpowering, secretive and difficult to interrupt? In this episode of Before Dieting, Bronwyn Fletcher explores relief eating through the lens of systems thinking. Instead of framing eating as a simple problem of willpower or self-control, this episode examines how relief eating forms as a repeatable system designed to solve tension, overload and emotional discomfort. Using Meri’s story, Bronwyn walks through the hidden logic beneath late-night eating, food secrecy, rigid food rules and the constant internal tug-of-war many women live with around food. This episode also introduces the three stages of relief eating: Hungering, Eating and Resolution, showing how patterns that feel chaotic often follow a very structured process once they are slowed down and examined closely. Rather than asking ‘How do I stop eating like this?’, this episode invites a different question: ‘What relief is this eating giving me?’ Key Takeaways Relief eating is not random; it operates as a repeatable system.Food can function as relief, escape, rebellion or nervous system regulation.Childhood food experiences often shape adult eating systems.Shame reduces understanding; observation increases insight. Start Here If you want to understand what’s shaping your eating, start with the Weight Ecosystem diagnostic, or copy and paste the following link: https://www.weightingforhappiness.com.au/weight-ecosystem-diagnostic Read the Blog here or copy and paste the following link: https://www.weightingforhappiness.com.au/post/relief-eating-and-weight-regain-the-hidden-logic-inside-the-eating-system Please subscribe to this Podcast and leave a rating, so other women can find it. If you know any other woman who is struggling with weight regain, please pass this on. If you have any questions, please email me at hello@weightingforhappiness.com.au #weightregain, #emotioneating, #overeating, #foodrules, #eatingsystem, #womenshealth, #midlifewomen, #dieting, #weightlossafter40, #dietcycle, #menopauseweightgain, #psychologyofeating, #beforedieting, #reliefeating, #comforteating, #emotionaleating, #8eatingtypes

    12 min

  4. May 19

    When Weight Regain Is Really About the Life You’re Living

    Soraya spent years believing her weight problem was about food. Like many women with recurring weight regain, she became highly skilled at dieting, cycling between strict calorie restriction during the week and overeating on weekends. On the surface, the explanation seemed obvious: she lacked control around food. But when we looked more closely, something very different emerged. Behind the dieting and overeating was a woman living a life built around duty, loyalty and keeping her parents proud. A woman whose career looked successful from the outside but no longer felt like her own from the inside. This episode explores one of the most important distinctions in the Weighting for Happiness framework: the difference between a food problem and a life problem that is expressing itself through food. Because recurring weight regain is rarely as simple as eating too much. It is often the visible symptom of a much larger system underneath. Key Takeaways Why recurring weight regain is a complex systems problemHow calorie restriction creates catch-up eatingThe difference between food-level explanations and root causesWhy understanding your eating system changes the questions you ask If this episode has echoes in your own life, start with the Weight Ecosystem diagnostic. It helps you move beyond food alone and begin identifying the wider emotional, behavioural and life patterns shaping your weight. You can read the accompanying Blog for more information: https://www.weightingforhappiness.com.au/post/when-weight-regain-is-really-about-the-life-you-re-living If this resonates, start with the Weight Ecosystem diagnostic. https://www.weightingforhappiness.com.au/diagnostics/weight-ecosystem-diagnostic Please subscribe to this Podcast and leave a rating, so other women can find it. If you know any other woman who is struggling with weight regain, please pass this on. If you have any questions please email me at hello@weightingforhappiness.com.au #weightregain, #emotioneating, #overeating, #foodrules, #eatingsystem, #womenshealth #midlifewomen, #dieting, #weightlossafter40, #dietcycle, #menopauseweightgain #psychologyofeating, #beforedieting, #reliefeating, #comforteating, #emotionaleating, #8eatingtypes

    11 min

  5. May 12

    Midlife weight gain: The Role of Trust in Weight Regain

    Maggie’s story doesn’t start with food. It starts with trust. In this episode, you’ll hear how a lifetime of dieting and weight regain can sit on top of something far less visible; a loss of trust that began long before any diet was introduced. Maggie has built a highly controlled way of eating. On paper, it works. In reality, it leaves her unsatisfied and caught in a predictable pattern of relief eating. This episode moves beyond food choices and looks at the structure underneath them. How family conditions shape eating, how emotional needs become tied to food, and why control cannot replace trust. There is a clear shift here: from trying to fix eating, to understanding the system that produces it. Key Takeaways Weight regain linked to trust, not willpowerRelief eating follows a predictable internal sequenceControl structures can stabilise eating but cannot resolve itEarly family conditions shape long-term eating patterns Read the full blog here: https://www.weightingforhappiness.com.au/post/why-diets-fail-the-role-of-trust-in-weight-regain-maggie-s-story If this resonates, start with the Weight Ecosystem diagnostic. https://www.weightingforhappiness.com.au/diagnostics/weight-ecosystem-diagnostic Please subscribe to this Podcast and leave a rating, so other women can find it. If you know any other woman who is struggling with weight regain, please pass this on. If you know a woman who needs this, please share it with her. Any Questions: hello@weightingforhappiness.com.au OR Connect with me on: LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/bronwynfletcheratweightingforhappiness/ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/beforedieting.podcast/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61587755296729 #weightregain, #emotioneating, #overeating, #foodrules, #eatingsystem, #womenshealth, #weightlossafter40, #dieting, #psychologyofeating, #midlifewomen

    11 min

  6. May 5

    Weight regain isn’t solved with better eating habits

    If you’ve been trying to fix your weight with better habits, this episode explains why that approach keeps failing. Last week, we introduced the idea that systems are not habits. This week, we go deeper. Because once you understand that your eating is a system, not a set of individual behaviours, a more important question emerges: Why does your weight keep returning, even when your goal is to change it? The answer is confronting. Your eating system has its own goal. And it’s not weight loss. In this episode, we break down: why habits only ever touch the surface of a much deeper structurewhy fast weight loss creates system backlash and weight regainwhy “low and slow” is the only approach that works with your system, not against itand why the scale is the least useful measure of progress when you’re trying to change a system You’ll also hear Denise’s story, a woman who spent decades losing and regaining weight and what changed when she stopped trying to get weight loss “over with quickly” and started working with her eating system instead. This episode will change how you think about: better eating habitsweight cyclingyo-yo dietingand why diets fail Key Takeaways 1️⃣ Your eating system has its own goal It is designed to maintain balance, not to lose weight. 2️⃣ Fast dieting creates backlash Big, sudden changes trigger hunger, slow metabolism, and lead to weight regain and overshoot. 3️⃣ Habits don’t change systems They can support change, but they don’t alter the structure driving your eating. 4️⃣ Low and slow is the only sustainable pathway Small, consistent changes allow the system to adapt without fighting back. 🔗 Blog Post: Systems not habits are driving your weight regain https://www.weightingforhappiness.com.au/post/systems-not-habits-are-driving-your-weight-regain Please leave a review so other women can find the podcast. And if you know a woman who needs to hear this information, please pass on the link. If you have any questions, you can email me at: hello@weightingforhappiness.com.au OR connect with me via: LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/bronwynfletcheratweightingforhappiness/ Instagram https://www.instagram.com/beforedieting.podcast/ Facebook https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61587755296729 #weightregain, #emotioneating, #overeating, #foodrules, #eatingsystem, #womenshealth, #weightlossafter40, #dieting, #psychologyofeating, #midlifewomen

    9 min

  7. Apr 28

    Systems Are Not Habits: Why Weight Regain Keeps Happening

    Understand your recurring weight by starting with Your Weight Ecosystem diagnostic. ✅ SHOW NOTES When women say ‘I just need better eating habits,’ it sounds logical. But what if that assumption is the problem? In this episode, Bronwyn challenges one of the most widely accepted ideas in weight loss: that habits are the solution. Because when it comes to weight regain, habits don’t fail. They’re just being used at the wrong level. This episode introduces a critical shift: from habits → to rulesfrom behaviour → to systems You’ll hear why what looks like a ‘bad habit’ is often a rule-driven response inside a larger eating system, and why trying to fix those behaviours one by one creates cognitive overload, not lasting change. This episode also introduces key characteristics of systems, including why they return to balance, why weight regain is predictable, and why cause and effect are often misunderstood. If you’ve ever felt like your eating runs on autopilot and doesn’t match your intentions, this episode will explain why. Key Takeaways What women call ‘habits’ are often rules driving behaviourEating is a system, not a collection of isolated actionsSystems seek balance, this is why weight regain happensHabit stacking creates cognitive overload, not lasting change If this episode has changed how you think about your eating, the next step is to see your own system clearly. Start with the Your Weight Ecosystem diagnostic. https://www.weightingforhappiness.com.au/weight-ecosystem-diagnostic This is where you move from guessing to understanding. 🖥️ Read the Blog Systems are not Habits: https://www.weightingforhappiness.com.au/post/why-weight-regain-keeps-happening 🙌 Please leave a review so other women can find the podcast. And if you know a woman who needs to hear this information, please pass on the link. 📝If you have any questions, you can email me at: hello@weightingforhappiness.com.au #weightregain #eatingsystem #foodrules #reliefeating #overeating #midlifewomen #dietcycle #beforedieting #weightcycling #whyDietsFail

    11 min

  8. Apr 21

    Body Fat and Weight Regain: What Your Eating System Is Really Doing

    In this episode, Bronwyn challenges one of the most entrenched beliefs in weight loss: that body fat is simply the result of overeating. Instead, she introduces a systems thinking perspective that reframes body fat as functional. Not passive. Not accidental. But part of an eating system that may be solving problems in ways that are rarely examined. Drawing on real case examples, this episode explores how body fat can act as protection, postponement, paradox, or projection. Each one revealing that what looks like a weight problem can be a weight benefit. If you’ve experienced weight regain, this episode will reframe how you think about body fat. And it will do it without blame or shame. Key Takeaways Body fat is not always a by-product of an eating system. In many cases, it plays a role within an eating system that serves a purpose. When body fat has a function, removing it without understanding that function leads to weight cycling. Lasting change requires understanding what body fat has been doing for you, not just trying to remove it. If you would like a copy of The Four P’s of Body Fat, email me at hello@weightingforhappiness.com.au and I will send you a copy. Links & Resources Read the Blog: Body Fat and Weight Regain: What Your Eating System Is Really Doing Connect with me on: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/bronwynfletcheratweightingforhappiness/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beforedieting.podcast/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61587755296729 Please leave a review so other women can find the podcast. And if you know a woman who needs to hear this information, please pass on the link.

    14 min
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About

Before Dieting… | Uncovering Eating Patterns and Weight Cycles - is the podcast that explores the eight types of eating and the hidden food stories behind persistent weight cycles and diet frustration. Hosted by Bronwyn Fletcher, a systems thinker, this show reveals the eating patterns that keep you stuck and uncovers the real causes behind your weight struggles. If you’re tired of dieting without success, discover a new perspective that goes beyond calories and willpower to help you break free from the endless cycle of weight loss and regain.

Information

  • Creator
    Bronwyn Fletcher
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    47
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Show Website
    Before Dieting...